Trade unionist Carvil Duncan yesterday said that he was asked by President David Granger in February to resign as Chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC) and from other constitutional commissions.
In a statement released to the press, Duncan said he was supposed to later confirm his agreement to resign to State Minister Joseph Harmon but has been unable to get in contact with him in the almost eight-month period since then.
A tribunal was recently appointed by Granger to determine whether Duncan should be removed as Chairman of the PSC.
It was set up in light of pending charges against Duncan, a former member of the Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL) board, who was accused of stealing from the company. That matter is still engaging the attention of the court.
According to Duncan’s statement, sometime in February—he did not give a specific date—he received a telephone call from the Secretary to the Minister of State Joseph Harmon indicating his interest in a meeting the following Monday at the Ministry of the Presidency.
He said that he subsequently met with Harmon, who said that he was instructed by Granger to have him resign as Chairman of the PSC as well as the other constitutional service commissions—the Judicial Service Commission and the Police Service Commission.
Duncan said that during that meeting, Harmon also requested that he consider a financial package that would accompany the resignation. “My answer to him was that I had preferred to speak with the President on this matter and I then exited his office,” he said.
According to Duncan, he received a telephone call from Harmon’s Secretary later the same day and was requested to attend a meeting with the President at 11am that day.
He said he went to the meeting with the President, who was accompanied by Harmon and an unknown individual.
According to Duncan, Granger, like Harmon, insisted that he resign as Chairman of the PSC and the other constitutional service commissions.
“He then said to me as much as three times, that “he does not want any blood on his carpet,” forcing me to move in the direction of resigning by the deadline of March 15, 2016. The President offered me a financial package under the same conditions as had been offered by Minister Harmon if I were to resign as he insisted,” he added, while noting that he left the meeting with an understanding that he would return a call to Harmon confirming his agreement to resign.
However, Duncan said he was unable to contact Harmon since then despite several attempts.
The Ministry of the Presidency, in a response to Stabroek News last evening, said that the President indicated that he met with Duncan in an effort to have him voluntarily vacate the constitutional positions he holds since it is “undesirable for someone facing a criminal charge” to hold the posts.
With regards to the “blood on the carpet” comment referred to by Duncan, the Ministry of Presidency said that “it is an idiomatic expression suggesting that he would be forced to vacate the positions he holds through legal means if he does not leave voluntarily.” It was noted too that the meeting was a private one held in an attempt to afford Duncan “a graceful exit.”
The president’s appointment of the tribunal to determine whether Duncan should be removed as Chairman of the PSC was signaled by the administration in March, when it was disclosed that Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo had written Duncan requesting that he show cause why a tribunal should not be established, as provided for by Article 225 of the Constitution of Guyana, to address the question of his removal from the constitutional offices of Chairman of the Public Service Commission and member of the Police Service Commission and Judicial Service Commission.
In the letter, the Prime Minister advised Duncan that the procedure had been invoked on the basis that the offences for which he has been charged place him in a position where it was necessary for him to defend the charges before the court. He added that there was also concern that during this period Duncan would be unable to perform the duties imposed upon him by the constitution in relation to the three constitutional offices.
The letter had requested that Duncan respond within 14 days of its receipt, but Nagamootoo indicated that no reply had been received up to the time the Prime Minister’s Office made the letter public.
Duncan, in his statement, said that that he read a report in one of the daily newspapers, quoting Nagamootoo’s Personal Assistant saying words to the effect that he (Duncan) failed to respond to a letter sent to him by the Prime Minister. “I had checked with both of my offices which were never in receipt of any letter sent by the Prime Minister. I also checked at the post office in my area which informed me that it had no outstanding mail for me. It may be opportune to note that I was also never contacted by the Prime Minister or any of his agents,” he added.
